Hey y'all! Sooooo, I did a bunch of drugs, read a book about outlaws, watched SoA, and decided: "well, i'm an adult. I guess i should buy a motorcycle."
So, off to craigslist I go, in search of something to learn on. I didn't exactly know what I wanted, I just knew one thing, I wanted a motorcycle by the end of summer.
and low and behold, I find this 1990 GS500e, in decent shape. The only real problems to begin with is the fork is bleeding a bit, and the guy who sold it to me dropped it on the right side so the master cylinder lever was busted about 1/4 of the way off.and the right mirror was gone. The mirros have since been replaced, and the brake lever is on its way. The engine for sure needs to be cleaned, and will be done as soon as the bike goes to winter storage (the reason for this thread).
The bikes history, according to the guy who sold it to me (the 3rd owner) was that it started off as a Motorcycle school bike, then it was owned by a guy who barely rode it, then owned by him, and he only rode it 4 seasons (i'm in Chicago, we can't ride in the winter, and by the looks of the guy who sold it to me, he wasn't the type who would ride in any weather below 60 degrees.)
So....its time to do some math: considering the bike is from Illinois since it's purchase by the first owner, and in illinois we can only ride half the year (lol) this bike has seen 14 years worth of riding. With 9900 on the clock, i'd say that's accurate. There isn't much rust on it, save for the usual places you'd find on a 28 year old piece of metal.
The bike runs fine, and will be ok to learn on. I've ridden dirt bikes in the past, and have already taken this bike out once in a parking lot of the nearest motorcycle school for a private lesson from a buddy who used to race.
By profession I'm a bicycle messenger, and have been for the last 9 years. I'm super aware when riding in traffic. I have an audi a4 which I can work on, so working on this bike shouldn't be too hard. But, when help is needed, help can be obtained.
So....this thread is my new build thread. My plan is to breath some life back into this engine, and have some fun.
new mirrors and a few close up pics of the engine.
Quote from: Mauve on August 18, 2018, 09:48:13 AM
new mirrors and a few close up pics of the engine.
The stickers on those old GS500's are my favourite design. Wish the had kept all models looking like tat and your panels look like they're in good condition. I believe they called them slingshots. Is that written on the side?
Quote from: Toner on August 18, 2018, 10:39:22 AM
Quote from: Mauve on August 18, 2018, 09:48:13 AM
new mirrors and a few close up pics of the engine.
The stickers on those old GS500's are my favourite design. Wish the had kept all models looking like tat and your panels look like they're in good condition. I believe they called them slingshots. Is that written on the side?
No, but the Wikipedia page for this bike has the same color and design and it's labled as Slingshot.
Welcome to the site Mauve!!! Congrats on the bike purchase!
Awesome thread and pics... I can't wait to see more :cheers:
Quote from: ShowBizWolf on August 18, 2018, 12:21:11 PM
Welcome to the site Mauve!!! Congrats on the bike purchase!
Awesome thread and pics... I can't wait to see more :cheers:
thank you! I see from your build thread that you have a slightly newer one, but with the same slingshot stickers. Your thread gave me plenty of ideas, mostly the lights in the gauges and your led lights in the frames. will have to look through your thread a bit more
I am flattered :embarrassed:
Thanks for checking out my thread... yes we certainly do have a similar color scheme going on! If you need any additional info, just let me know :thumb:
Quote from: ShowBizWolf on August 18, 2018, 08:58:26 PM
I am flattered :embarrassed:
Thanks for checking out my thread... yes we certainly do have a similar color scheme going on! If you need any additional info, just let me know :thumb:
heck ya! we will def be in touch.
from what i've been told by the person who is giving me lessons (a former racer, who raced on a gs500) my bike is going to need to have its carbs cleaned (which is something we factored into the offer on the bike) as well as have the fork seals replaced. I'm lucky bc my car mechanic is a family friend who lets me use his garage to work on my car (oil changes and what not) and his tech there has a GXSR, so it'll be learning time come winter.
So what drugs were you on when you decided to buy a GS500? If your making bad decisions, then the drugs aren't doing you any good LOL
The bike does look clean though, but to be an outlaw biker on a GS is no easy feat.I'm not sure it's even possible.
Well welcome to the forum and i hope you enjoy your stay.
Johno
IMHO 89, 90 and 91 are the best freaking evers on a GS.
That blue/silver of 91 is my absolute favorite ever ...
But yes what drugs did you do, and you gotta share em with us, unless its a pharmaceutical product ... dont want that doctored crap, its terrible for you ... just the low risk of sexual side effects man ... I want high risk of sexual side effects ... cos Low risk just means low chance you get any. Can you imagine peddling say "wellbutrin" on the street corner. Yea fat lady rolls up ... in her minivan, kids screaming in the back ... some winking and some some hand over, and off she goes, next light she's snorting it and 2 sec later she happy, pulls into buuger king and eat the whole menu ...
Now imagine if you were pushing crack ... so crack ho shows up. She walking usually, so she's fit and thin as a rail, and that's where the high sexual side effects happen.
Cool.
Buddha.
I never said I wanted to be an outlaw biker, i just said that i ate drugs and was inspired to buy a motorcycle O0
i guess my decision to buy THIS bike was price and the fact that i'm 5'3 and the bike's seat height is 31 inches (my inseam is 30, and we shaved the seat for now, but over he off season the plan is to put different foam all together.)
no matter waht kinda bike you ride, outlaw biker culture is some f%$king cool shaZam!, imo. the ones HST wrote about were the last american cowboys.
as for the drugs? LSD has now led me to purchase 2 things in my life: an arcade machine (I made it into a MAME cabinet) and this bike.
I'm getting my second private lesson this afternoon. The first one, my instructor (a friend of mine who used to race these) rode the bike to a parking lot for me and we tried it out.
coincidentally, it was the parking lot of the nearest motorcycle school (near the United Center in Chicago) and it was at night, but I totally survived.
On thursday, my plan is to try to get into the first moto class at the DMV, even though im booked for one in October, you can sometimes get in on standby/walk-in. people just don't show up for whatever reason (it's common.) and since they want to run a class and need at least 8 people (they book 12) its a good bet i can get in.
I do feel like this bike is a bit big for me, but, i'll get used to it, and i'm sure after this 20 hour course I take, where I can use a smaller bike and take all the tests for a license, i'll be more comfortable on mine. I read some article about being mentally prepared to ride a motorcycle. f%$k if that aint true.
I've ridden my bicycle on the streets here year round for the last 12 years. 9 of them have been as a professional bike messenger. I'm not afraid to ride in traffic with cars (and i've been hit by/hit a car more times than i can count), but ya, i'd be a liar if i didn't say i was SUPER nervous as of right now to ride this bike anywhere but a parking lot. I figure it's normal, to be nervous about riding a 400lb machine amongst the 3,000 lb machines, but you'd think my experience riding a 15 lb (LoL my bike really is that light-weight) machine amongst those same 3,000 lb ones would hedge that feeling a bit.
only time will tell.
Congrats and welcome!
Quote from: Mauve on August 19, 2018, 07:51:07 AM
i guess my decision to buy THIS bike was price and the fact that i'm 5'3 and the bike's seat height is 31 inches (my inseam is 30, and we shaved the seat for now, but over he off season the plan is to put different foam all together.)
Instead of modifying the seat, you can lower the rear suspension pretty easily. Mostly I think you just replace a couple of linkages and re-tension the chain. Simple to do and simple to put it back if you ever want to. Search the forum or the Wiki for instructions.
I have an inseam of 28.74inches and I ride the bike just fine. One you get more comfortable on it, you'll be good just flatfooting it with one foot. I like to use my left for that and put my right foot on the rear brake to stabilise the bike. Although I have to admit, I'm now running the R6 rear shock on preload 1 and that's made it a wee bit lower so I can put my left foot flat down without having to scoot one buttocks off the seat and that does feel better. :)
Kilted is right, lowering links (which are actually longer than stock) are plentiful and pretty cheap on eBay.
Best wishes to you Mauve with your lessons and whatnot... I'm enjoying your thread :)
Quote from: Kilted1 on August 19, 2018, 08:21:03 AM
Congrats and welcome! Quote from: Mauve on August 19, 2018, 07:51:07 AM
i guess my decision to buy THIS bike was price and the fact that i'm 5'3 and the bike's seat height is 31 inches (my inseam is 30, and we shaved the seat for now, but over he off season the plan is to put different foam all together.)
Instead of modifying the seat, you can lower the rear suspension pretty easily. Mostly I think you just replace a couple of linkages and re-tension the chain. Simple to do and simple to put it back if you ever want to. Search the forum or the Wiki for instructions.
Yea and a lowered GS looks - well ... like crap. Almost as crappy as one with a shaved seat ... what is that, like a shaved sheep ?
If you have to flat foot it or this or that ... buy a lower bike.
That's why they make I dunno, smaller/lower bikes.
Cool.
Buddha.
Quote from: The Buddha on August 20, 2018, 04:08:48 PM
Quote from: Kilted1 on August 19, 2018, 08:21:03 AM
Congrats and welcome! Quote from: Mauve on August 19, 2018, 07:51:07 AM
i guess my decision to buy THIS bike was price and the fact that i'm 5'3 and the bike's seat height is 31 inches (my inseam is 30, and we shaved the seat for now, but over he off season the plan is to put different foam all together.)
Instead of modifying the seat, you can lower the rear suspension pretty easily. Mostly I think you just replace a couple of linkages and re-tension the chain. Simple to do and simple to put it back if you ever want to. Search the forum or the Wiki for instructions.
Yea and a lowered GS looks - well ... like crap. Almost as crappy as one with a shaved seat ... what is that, like a shaved sheep ?
If you have to flat foot it or this or that ... buy a lower bike.
That's why they make I dunno, smaller/lower bikes.
Cool.
Buddha.
(https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSVAnLRFkTUH3fWU8h75yHh6nhl8-B2aCcWPLOl5wYnbmT3DxZM)
(https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQMkJmgLrQh2BfJowLeIGjPekXe9VSnZrxv_3R3zELJZjt7dZ5e)
A lowered GS looks like crap: according to you. which is fine I guess.
a shaved seat looks like crap: according to you. which is fine I guess. you're not the one riding my bike.
I should buy a smaller bike: according to you. thanks for the consideration. it's duly noted in my motorcycle diary that I should've either spent more money, or just not have bought a motorcycle at all, since this one doesn't fit properly like a tailored suit.
Right now, you can't really tell the difference from afar between the seat before I shaved it and after. I'm not a complete moron when it comes to foam, and upholstery. The plan, by the way, is to replace the 28 year old open cell foam that came on the bike with something close celled and closer to the bike, while still retaining enough cushion to block vibration. that's the point of a seat right?
I guess i could buy a new seat, but i feel like replacing the foam on the stock seat pan and recovering it is the way to go.
I would never lower a motorcycle. I live in a city, with potholes and speed bumps.
Quote from: Mauve on August 21, 2018, 10:47:22 AM
Right now, you can't really tell the difference from afar between the seat before I shaved it and after. I'm not a complete moron when it comes to foam, and upholstery. The plan, by the way, is to replace the 28 year old open cell foam that came on the bike with something close celled and closer to the bike, while still retaining enough cushion to block vibration. that's the point of a seat right?
Sounds like the kind of project that at least some of us would love to see pics of. :D It's your bike. Do what you want with it and don't let someone else's puristic sensibilities get in the way.
COngrats on sweet gs! Don't worry about buddha,..he gets cranky sometime :laugh: He's a great guy and wealth of knowledge.
Can't wait to read somemore of your experiences and what you do with it!
:thumb:
Anyway a honda VTR250 shock is a direct drop in fit for a GS and gets you that retarded lowered look without having to cut an already anaemic and painfully unpadded for boy bits seat. Sorry I was thinking you had those, I just realized you might not ...
Longer linkage on a GS shock doesn't work because it lets the clevise hit the shock body. That linkage can be removed and shaved ill it fits ... its all a lot of work, and a vtr shock is faster, easier and can be swapped easy if needed.
Cool.
Buddha.
Oh another option! I know that Datona makes crazy nice boots for women that have an internal elevation. The heel is elevated about 6cm and the toe about 2cm. Per boot, that is. The benefit obviously is that there's no actual heel to get caught behind a peg, and they could also definitely pass for unisex boots. ;) They're ridiculously pricey though. I'd love to get my hands on a good second hand pair but even those are still way above my budget. But it's an option worth considering, even if just for the long haul. :)
alright well i'll take everyones thoughts into consideration. Right now, lets focus on other things about this bike: like learning how to ride it.
I've had 2 lessons so far, the second being on a nice lonely street a few blocks away from my house. its about a 2 block stretch of warehouses and last sunday when I was there with my teacher, it was good to go to learn how to shift into second, and to learn how to turn around in the street without putting a foot down.
Shifting is easy once you get the hang of it (and this time out, I didn't kill the engine trying to get it into first.) the first few times I did the U-turn, i put my foot down, and clutch walked it around. But once i got over the fear of possibly dropping the bike as a result of not going fast enough (my thinking being: how fast do i have to go to stay upright on this freakin' thing? come to find out, you don't have to be going that fast) it was easy. Start at one side of this street, and take off, shift into second, and at the end of the block make my U turn, slowing down and shifting into 1st before , and then gving it gas to get back. there was a street halfway through but no stop sign, and no cars, but every few passes i stopped and started again.
On one of my U turn follies, my friend had to push me around the turn to show me just how fast I could be going, and still balance on the bike. "hey listen, if i can push you on this thing and that's fast enough to stay up, then just trolling into 1st is fast enough to balance." Once he put it into that sort of perspective, it was game on.
Yesterday, at one of my several jobs (i'm a bike messenger) i watched motorcycles all day in traffic. it really did re-assure to me how fast you need to be actually going, to balance on a bike. the answer being: not very fast.
a new part came in the mail today, which is the last of the parts I immediately need for this bike: a master cylinder lever. I think the site i got it from was partsgiant.com. for $12 and free shipping i can't complain. It's amazing how cheap some of these parts are, and how similar they are to bicycle parts. The mirrors I got however, are cheap af, and i'll probably have to spring for some better ones over the off season, but for now, having 2 crap mirrors is better than one stock mirror, or no mirror at all. I'll look around this forum to see what others have done.
The off season will include the cleaning of the carbs, the fixing of the fork (minor seal leakage......) as well as the lowering of the seat. Maybe just maybe load the bike up on a pickup truck and drive south to where it's warm and ride around.
I've dropped the bike twice so far, all 3 times in the alley behind my house. :dunno_black:
i guess it's better to get those out of the way in the privacy of my alley instead of the non privacy of say.......an intersection somewhere.
i'm pretty short dude, and I don't weigh much. I've been looking into videos on how to properly pickup a motorcycle. I may even lay down some carpet in my parking spot and have my roommates help me lay the bike down carfully so i can practice picking it up. might be a dumb idea, so i will have to mull it over.
later.
edit:
also, the earliest I can start showing up to these classes to get in as a stand-by/walk in is next week. If i show up and they have room, I'll have a license by the end of it, and thus will be able to at least legally take my bike on the street. But at the very latest, October 18th is the class i'm enrolled for. but you can show up to any of them to try and get in. a lot of people tend to not show up for whatever reason.
bored-date
enrolled in a class for next week at a different location than the one I had originally enrolled in, so instead of mid october, i've pushed up training and license a bunch. which is good, bc it'll give me some time to ride the bike before the snow falls here in Illinois.
The class requires gear obviously, and I found what I needed. First, I had bought a helmet from a guy that was an adult medium. It fit my head snuggly on the inside, but the shell was too big, but I was in a hurry to get one before my first private lesson, it was black, yadda yadda yadda, so i went with it and it made me feel like Rick Moranis in Spaceballs.
So, the other day I went back on Craigslist, and found a youth sized Scorpion EXO-400 for $20. In great shape. no dings or dents. Padding was fine too. Smelled like it had been sitting on a shelf though, but i took care of that with de-odorizer. I wear youth sized New Eras snap backs for the same reason i didn't like the adult sized helmet: yeah the inside fits, but the outside of it was too big- same with new eras.
For gloves, I went to a local shop that sells/makes their own moto-gear. Gloves set me back $40 and they were women's mediums. Fit perfect.
My jacket, is a MotoCentric Force, that I got on closeout for $50. It's msrp was i think 200-something.
I installed the master cylinder lever pictured in the last post, as well as fixed the handlebars, they were a little bit off from when the p.o. dropped the bike and broke the MCL. After much deliberation, I want to turn this bike into a bit of a street fighter, sans the dorky stunt shaZam! because I don't even stunt on my regular bicycle. I'll change the bars to some super-moto ones, and get some funky grips. and i plan to sticker-bomb the gas tank as well as the fenders. All of that being done in the offseason, as the bike in its current cockpit form will work just fine.
Quote from: Mauve on September 01, 2018, 01:39:23 PM
I had bought a helmet from a guy that was an adult medium. It fit my head snuggly on the inside, but the shell was too big, but I was in a hurry to get one before my first private lesson, it was black, yadda yadda yadda, so i went with it and it made me feel like Rick Moranis in Spaceballs.
So, the other day I went back on Craigslist, and found a youth sized Scorpion EXO-400 for $20. In great shape. no dings or dents. Padding was fine too. Smelled like it had been sitting on a shelf though, but i took care of that with de-odorizer. I wear youth sized New Eras snap backs for the same reason i didn't like the adult sized helmet: yeah the inside fits, but the outside of it was too big- same with new eras.
I feel like I have to say something here. Well, a couple somethings.
You should
NEVER buy a used helmet. Helmets are a "one and done" sort of safety device, and often there is no visible damage while a helmet can still be compromised. Someone dropping their helmet on the floor can be enough to compromise it, and there is no gaurantee the previous owner hasn't done that or worse.
The second thing is helmets have a shelf life. Longer than 5 years and the impact absorbing EPS liner can harden beyond acceptable levels increasing the risk of cranial injury. I've lost track of how many helmets I see on Craigslist that I can identify as 10+ years old just from seeing what model it is, those helmets are shelf decorations at best. Most people aren't selling a helmet they bought last month...
The third thing is helmets are designed to break in to YOU for the most comfortable fit, and the internals are rarely maintained by their owners.
So not only are the pads probably smashed flat by a face that isn't yours ensureing the fit isn't ideal, but they've absorbed someone else's skin and sweat, and even with a good cleaning that would just make me uncomfortable. Ideally you get all new pads, but at that cost why not just get a new helmet?
It's like, would you buy some well used gym-shoes from a thrift store? Shirts and jeans and stuff, why not, just toss them in the washing machine and they're sanitized, but shoes?
*Nobody* washes shoes, they're permeated with someone else's nasty foot fluids and I ain't about surrounding my feet in that, no sir, even despite the fact I wear socks.
But the BIGGER issue is you bought a youth helmet. The shells and EPS liners on youth helmets are designed purposely for CHILDREN. Even if your head is physically small enough to fit in a youth helmet, your head is going to be heavier than a child's and as such needs a thicker EPS, and a thicker EPS requires a larger shell.
Like it or not, the Darth Helmet look is the one that is the most protective. The kids helmet might be lighter and smaller profiled, but go down in that and I can almost guarantee you'll get up with at best a concussion and at worst you just won't get up at all.
Go to a local motorcycle shop and get a NEW, ADULT helmet so you can actually be protected. Look up CycleGear and if one is within driving distance make the trip. If price is an issue they have some helmets as low as $50, or they offer 3/6/12mo payment plans if you want something more premium like a Shoei.
Do yourself a favor! Your safety IS worth the investment!
what is this? you just coming to my threads to make walls of text about stuff you assume I don't know about?
granted,thanks for the information about a kids helmet not being the right one (i think it's failed logic but ok, i'll give you a hint: i'm 5'3, 110 lbs. i think it'll be OK, Dad.)
do you regularly go around and give a bob villa impersonation?
I just find it super annoying that I logged into this dead board to find a freaking saftey lesson in one thread, and then you yammering on about how the MST class I took made the right call (you weren't even there.)
leave the saftey school schitck to your students homie. I'm not here to learn how to ride or get tips on riding, i'm here to show off the bike I'm building.
Quote from: Mauve on September 09, 2018, 07:33:12 AM
what is this? you just coming to my threads to make walls of text about stuff you assume I don't know about?
thanks for the information about a kids helmet not being the right one (i think it's failed logic but ok, i'll give you a hint: i'm 5'3, 110 lbs. i think it'll be OK, Dad.)
If you did know about it I don't think you would have made that choice to begin with, but I won't lose sleep at night if you keep on doing you.
Quote from: Mauve on September 09, 2018, 07:33:12 AM
I just find it super annoying that I logged into this dead board to find a freaking saftey lesson in one thread, and then you yammering on about how the MST class I took made the right call (you weren't even there.)
You do know what a forum IS, right?
Quote from: Mauve on September 09, 2018, 07:34:36 AM
I'm not here to learn how to ride or get tips on riding, i'm here to show off the bike I'm building.
You barely even know how to operate a motorcycle and you're rejecting good advice from people with much more experience than yourself... Even if you didn't ask for advice, you're needlessly endangering yourself by wearing a helmet that won't provide sufficient protection. If you're aware of that fact and don't care, fine, I won't try to convince you any further. But we're just trying to help you avoid getting hurt.
You may find that life gets easier when you get over your Napoleon complex and learn to take some constructive criticism. Everyone here is just trying to be helpful. You want to show off your bike, great! I look forward to the pics. You just want to rant and not have to deal with anyone's opinion but your own? There's a section on Craigslist for that. But if you post here or in any open forum, there's a good chance that someone is going to have an opinion, whether concurring or dissenting, and post it. That's just the way things are.